Recently, the Sentinel joined TV One affiliates at the Harmony Gold Theatre in Hollywood for the TV One premiere of Jean of the Joneses, a comedy-drama starring Taylour Paige (Hit The Floor) as Jean, and her all too opinionated family of strong black women.
The drama, which made its debut to television on October 23, displays the effects of tightly kept family secrets that when revealed, rear an ugly head for all involved. Once tragedy hits, Jean not only navigates through her own career and relationship trials, but she’s also forced to confront truths within her own family.
The cast line-up also includes Sherri Shepherd, who portrays Jean’s mother Maureen in the movie. Maureen is unyielding in every sense of the word, denying her own vulnerability and struggling to fight the fears of her past, which becomes evident in her rocky relationship with her daughter.
The Sentinel also caught up with Erica Ash (Survivor’s Remorse), who plays the “baby” of the Jones sisters. Ash’s character is Anne, Jean’s hysterically batty aunt, who consistently finds herself making questionable decisions she isn’t accountable to.
Throughout the film, Jean is left in a constant state of curiosity and shock with the group of women revealing a series of unpredictable verities and antics. Actress Michelle Hurst, who plays Daphne in the movie, proceeds to add fuel to the fire of secrets, when she reveals a hard truth for all of the women.
Jean of the Joneses also follows Janet Jones, played by Gloria Reuben, who while enduring the pain of a nasty divorce, doesn’t mind distributing her wrath amongst the group of women as a means to cope.
Written and directed by Stella Meghie, the movie ultimately delves deep into self-discovery and acceptance of a family’s troubled past, to make room for a new reality and fresh start. “It was such a great representation of black women, even though they were having their troubles and their strife in the family, I just thought it was just such a fresh perspective, and I just wanted to be a part of making it come to life,” Ash stated.